Forever and Always
by oftheseaandintothewinds
Summary: When Elena finally realizes her feelings for Damon, she decides to act on them. Before 3x19. One-shot.


He crept up on me, he really did. Slowly at first, but now, he is completely upon me, breathing me and consuming me. Now as we stand in the dark in front of the boarding house, my mind starts to race. He is standing there, still a few feet away, but the invisible threads that tie us together seem to be pulling us closer. And I want nothing more than that, to be closer to him, to feel him all around me. He starts moving towards me, taking small steps. With every inch, he becomes more agonizingly handsome. He comes closer and closer, making my heart accelerate. His eyes are locked on mine, and I can't look away. I want to drown in the ocean he holds there. Finally, we are toe to toe. I realize that I have been holding my breath since he started moving, and I exhale, watching him breathe from me. His hands lightly graze my hips, before sliding over my stomach, and up my arms. Everywhere he touches leaves a trail of fire, and the electricity grows between us. His hands finally come to a stop, cupping my face. I can't keep my lock on his eyes any longer, and I let my gaze drift to his lips. Just the sight of them, and the remembrance of how perfect they were on mine, sends my heart stuttering even more than it was. I want to taste them, to savor them. I can't believe we are here, and I can't believe what I have done. Those three simple words, I've wanted to say them for so long, to tell the truth.

_I love you._

"Elena…" he murmurs, and I close my eyes. This is what I needed. Just the sound of my name on his lips sends shivers down my spine, and blood rushing to my head. I exhale slightly and lean into him just a bit. His smell is intoxicating. And I want him. I want him so bad. Everything he has ever said to me, the sweetest declarations of love, fade from my mind, and all of them are replaced with doubt. Doubt that he might not want me as much as I want him. I know I won't be able to handle that rejection. I have loved this man since the moment I met him. Little did I know that fated moment in the boarding house started his slow descent into consuming my heart. Damon. Damon. Damon.

I open my eyes again to find his blue ones exactly where I left them, gazing lovingly into mine. The look he held in them was full of pure devotion, adoration and desire. This man fills me with fear and love, excites me and challenges me, and completes me. He makes me whole in a way that Stefan never could. One look from him is enough to send shivers down my spine. The slightest brush of skin can set my face on fire. He is so close now. All I can see, hear, smell and think is Damon.

All I have to do is lean forward ever so slightly, with only a small movement he could be mine and I could be his. I move a fraction closer, but not close enough. There's only a millimeter between us now, and I can feel the electricity pouring off him. He's waiting for me to make the first move; he's not letting me off easy anymore, letting his actions make the choice for me. I'm scared. I am strong enough to deal with the death of my parents, and of Jenna. I can face vampires, witches, werewolves and hybrids. I can face constant fear of death. But I'm scared to reach out to this man, and to tell him that I love him. This thinking changes my mind. I am strong! If I can deal with all of those things, I can definitely deal with a measly love confession. I muster up all my courage and look into his eyes.

"Damon…" When I say his name he closes his eyes and sighs a bit. "Damon, I don't understand this, I don't understand what is going on between us. All I know is that I'm supposed to be in love with Stefan and..."

With that his hands leave my face, and he backs away. His walls immediately go back up, and the sweet and caring Damon of a few minutes ago is replaced by his cold and sarcastic ego.

"Why yes my dearest Elena, you _are_ supposed to be in love with Stefan. You two are perfect together. After all it will '_always be Stefan_.'" He says coldly.

"Why can't you let me finish? I don't want Stefan! I want you! I've always wanted you and I realize that now. You've been with me through everything, you have protected me, and you have loved me fiercely. You _are not_ a monster. You are kind, and loving and caring and sweet. And I think I've been in love with you from the beginning, from the second I've meet you. Don't give me that look Damon Salvatore, you heard me right! I am in love with you! I'm in love with you! I, Elena Gilbert, am madly, deeply irrevocably in love with you! I choose you Damon! I love y-". I didn't get a chance to finish before he captured my lips in a kiss. A spellbinding kiss, one that left me breathless. This was what I was waiting for. My hands flew to his hair, and he wrapped one of his around my neck and the other around my lower back, dragging me closer to him. But closer wasn't enough for me. I wanted it all. I have waited so long for this moment, so long to admit my love and so long to feel his, that I couldn't wait anymore. I asked for entrance, and he granted it, letting me taste him. I melted into his mouth and his body, letting him take me over. Everything was on fire. His hand moved a little lower to caress the sliver of skin between the top of my jeans and the bottom of my jacket. The connection of his hand with my skin sent shivers racing up my spine. I moaned into his mouth and in return he murmured my name again. His lips left my mouth to caress my jawline and race down my neck. All I could feel was ecstasy and raging desire building in my bones. He was making me whole again. With every touch, the pain lessened. He returned to my lips before breaking away and looking me in the eyes. He was breathing heavy, and I was too. Desire was written everywhere and love was surrounding us. I could feel it, and he could feel it too, but he had to be sure.

"You mean it?"

"Every word." I said. He still looked surprised, like he couldn't believe this was happening to him. I took his face in my hands, caressing his smooth skin. "I love you. I do."

At that moment, a part within him broke, and the final wall crumbled down before me, visible in his eyes. "Elena, I love you so much. I don't think I could describe it even if I tried. I've waited for this moment for two years, I've longed for it. And if it isn't real, I don't think I can take it. I really don't."

I could see the pain and the hope in his eyes. "It's real Damon. Look at me, this love, our love is real. There is nothing stopping us now. All I want is you."

With that, he kissed me again, but this time, much more tenderly. Slowly and purely, and If I didn't know it already, I knew it then. This was the man for me. He would always love me and protect me from any obstacle. And there were many obstacles, his brother, mine, Bonnie and Caroline, Alaric, but I knew we could face them. His lips were so soft, velvet like his voice, and so warm, enveloping mine. In that moment, I knew what I wanted. "Make love to me", I mumbled into his mouth. He stiffened, but recovered, sweeping me into his arms bridal style, and taking me into the house, and into his room. He backed me against his closed door and started to kiss me again. I didn't expect it to be this way with him. In my dreams he was rough and passionate, but now, I didn't know how I could have thought it would be any other way. He was slow, but passionate at the same time, making me shiver with the slightest touch. I reached up and slid his leather jacket off his shoulders, while he did the same with mine. I found the hem of his black shirt and let my fingers graze the bare skin of his stomach, getting an immediate shiver in return. I flattened my palms, and explored his chest slowly before pulling his shirt off altogether. He pulled off mine as well before pressing his naked torso to my bra clad chest. The feel of skin on skin almost sent me over the edge. I had never felt like this before, I had never felt so much desire for a man as I did with this one. He kissed down my neck and onto the swell of my breasts, feeling my heavily hammering heart. He moved us to his bed, straddling me on his knees and staring at me. For some reason, I didn't feel self-conscious at all. Here was this god of a man, who loved me with all of his heart, staring at my almost naked chest and I didn't feel embarrassed in the slightest. He reached down and slid his arms around my ribcage and unclasped my bra, slowly pulling it away from my body. His breath hitched, and he gazed in adoration.

"You are so beautiful", he whispered, before continuing to adore my body with his mouth and his hands.

When we finally became one, sparks flew before my eyes, and my head felt like it might explode. He gave me all he had, and I had never felt so complete, so whole. This was where I belonged, with Damon. He collapsed on top of me but I didn't mind, and traced lazy circles on his back with my fingers. He was still inside of me when he rose to his elbows to look into my eyes.

"I love you, Elena", he whispered.

I returned his gaze, and said "I love you too, Damon."

He kissed me once more before rolling off of me, only to pull me close to his side. I snuggled into him. On the brink of sleep, he turned to me and kissed my forehead.

"Forever and always", he said.

"Forever and always", I repeated, before falling asleep in his arms.


End file.
